JOHN’S BRIDGE DEATHS

Far from home and far from help, 14 people died Thursday after their van went off John’s Bridge in the Allagash Wilderness Waterway. One man survived. In the next few days state officials will draw conclusions about the cause of death; perhaps assign blame; maybe issue fines. It seems hardly enough. Maine should take time to reflect on the deaths of these men who died while pursuing this state’s most dangerous work and their own hopes for freedom, economic and otherwise.

They were woods workers, but unlike the traditional image of rural Mainers, Indians and French Canadians following the rivers north to the big woods, these men were Guatemalan and Honduran, here legally, in a van reportedly moving at 70 mph. It would take a globalization expert to explain exactly why they were in Maine, but suffice it to say they were willing to do very hard work for low wages. That these workers exist here – more than 5,800 foreign workers are certified to work in Maine – suggests how tightly wrapped is Maine in the world’s economy. Yet it is bound in a way only faintly visible to most residents.

Gov. Angus King’s response to the accident was immediate and appropriate. His statement said, “I was deeply saddened to hear of the tragic accident that occurred this morning and caused such a loss of life. As soon as we heard of the accident, resources from many state agencies including the Department of Conservation, the Warden

Service, the Maine State Police and the Department of Labor were immediately sent to the site to provide assistance and support. We will continue to do whatever we can to help those people who lost a loved one in this terrible accident.”

It was reported that the van in which the workers died was hauled onto a flatbed truck by log loader, with the dead inside, switched to another truck and later, with the dead still inside, driven to Augusta. Whatever the proper procedure is for moving the deceased, this was an undignified end to life. There was a press conference yesterday with various state and foreign officials that offered more information and a finer ending for these men. Maine, not having known them, can only imagine the loss for their grieving families.